Tag: books

Highlights of Newark Book Festival

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After a frustrating eighteen months of cancellations and postponements due to the pandemic, events are finally starting up again. Back in June, I took part in the inaugural Clevedon Literary Festival in my home town, and earlier this month, I travelled up North for the Newark Book Festival.  

2021 saw the fourth year of this festival. For a festival with a fairly local focus, the organisation and communication were outstanding; it felt like a much bigger and more professional event like the Hay Festival.  | Read more…

Creating Dyslexic Friendly Books

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What I’ve learned from being involved in a dyslexic friendly publishing project. If you follow me on Twitter you might have noticed me tweeting a lot about a Kickstarter project that is currently funding. The project is titled “Open Dyslexia” and it’s being run by my local bookshop, Books on | Read more…

It’s Launch Day! Giveaway & Live Stream

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After over 10 years of work it is finally LAUNCH DAY for my debut novel, Mime. To celebrate the launch, I’m running a giveaway to win a signed copy of the book, plus extra goodies! I’ll be doing a live stream on Facebook tonight at 6pm. I hope you’ll join | Read more…

10 Books That Influenced Me As A Writer

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As I gear up for the Kickstarter and launch for Mime, I find myself reflecting on how I got to where I am – a debut novelist with a book about to be published. Here are 10 books that have shaped my writing journey, from my early teens to now. | Read more…

Gravewatcher (PREVIEW)

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My (long) short story Gravewatcher appears in the newly released Tales from The Graveyard from North Bristol Writers. Here’s a sample from the opening. Carina watched from the cemetery gate. Her new arrival tried to shove the gardener’s shoulder, passed straight through, and stumbled to his knees. Those who died | Read more…

Memories of Terry Pratchett

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There are few occasions when the news that someone you have never met has passed away affects you almost as strongly as learning about the death of a loved one. Today, Sir Terry Pratchett, beloved, world rebound author of fantasy and humour, lost his battle with Alzheimers disease. When I | Read more…

General update and “coming soon”

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Along with the rest of Britain, I’ve had a bit of a dry spell recently. A blogging dry spell at least. Hopefully the two aren’t linked and it won’t start raining as a result of me posting an update. This is a bit of a general update and “what’s coming | Read more…

The Hunger Games – part 2 – a case study in character morality

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Last week I reviewed The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. These days, when I read a book, I like to look back and think about what I can learn from it. Whether it’s something the author did well and I can try to incorporate into my own writing, or something | Read more…